The (Drop) Top Questions

For many convertible lovers, putting the top down on a sunny day is all that matters. But those new to convertibles often have questions regarding safety, insurance and maintenance.

Scroll down to read some of the most frequently asked questions or click on the links below to jump to a specific topic.

• How safe are convertibles?
• Does it cost more to insure a convertible?
• Does a convertible require any special care?
• Do the rear windows in convertibles impair visibility?

How safe are convertibles?

In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, not a single new convertible went on sale in the U. S. Several factors are to blame, including a widespread lack of interest in fun cars during a time when the motor vehicle was increasingly perceived as nothing more than an unpleasant appliance. But a major reason had to do with safety: Manufacturers, being inundated at the time with new safety requirements, feared the government would mandate tougher standards for roof strength in convertibles.

In 1976, Cadillac announced that its Eldorado — shown above — would be “the last convertible in America.” Click here to read more trivia.  + enlarge image

That never happened, and beginning with the 1982 Chrysler LeBaron convertible — a successful attempt to inject more vitality into the company-saving K-Car — ragtops slowly crept back onto the U.S. market.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has imposed a roof-crush rule for closed cars and light trucks and has proposed upgrading it to require that every such vehicle’s superstructure be able to withstand 2.5 times its curb weight. But convertibles have always been — and apparently will continue to be — totally exempt.

This is most likely because rollover fatalities in convertibles are almost nonexistent. Of the 10,000 deaths caused by flips in 2004, only 94 occurred in convertibles — less than 1 percent. That’s partly because so few convertibles are on the road. But notably, the per-vehicle rollover-fatality rate is substantially lower for convertibles than it is for SUVs and pickups. Convertibles have lower centers of gravity even than sedans and coupes, because of their lighter roofs. They often are slightly heavier than the equivalent closed car, but that’s because of structural strengthening of the platform and the weight of top-operating mechanisms — weight that is lower in the car’s structure than is a steel roof. So they rarely roll over.

Still, convertible makers are conscious of safety. Most manufacturers worldwide strengthen their “A pillars” — the windshield corner posts — with special steel so strong it’ll support an upside-down car and, usually, the impact that put it there.

Convertible Safety Features

The 2006 Audi TT convertible has fixed rollbars behind the seats. + enlarge image  |  view slideshow >

Since 1980, German and Swedish manufacturers in particular have been in the vanguard of voluntarily providing convertible rollover protection. Some makers, such as Porsche and Mercedes-Benz, provide protective rollbars behind a roadster’s headrests or a cabriolet’s rear seats. Others such as BMW and Volvo equip their open cars with hidden rollbars that are spring-loaded to pop into place within milliseconds if a sensor detects an impending rollover. Volvo has even added head-curtain airbags to its new C70 that deploy upward out of the doors (the first airbags of this kind, Volvo says). These airbags remain rigid to increase protection in the event of a rollover.

The bottom line is: A properly belted-in convertible occupant is in less danger from a rollover accident than someone in an SUV, because the convertible is far less likely to roll over in the first place.

Does it cost more to insure a convertible?

Not because of the top. Insurance might cost more because convertibles typically are more expensive to replace than their mundane sedan and coupe counterparts.

But most insurers like drop-tops: they're often second or third cars, sometimes only occasionally driven and in good weather, and not often used for the mortal combat called commuting. With an aggressively driven SUV or any daily driver, the exposure is high. For a fun car driven selectively and conservatively, it's lower. This is not to say that you won't pay a substantial premium for a Porsche Carrera Turbo cabriolet, but the amount won't be any higher than for a Carrera Turbo coupe.

Some people  fear that perceived ease of entry will lead to theft of the entire car. But Toyota Camrys are more of a target for professionals, who concentrate not on oddball cars that comprise a tiny fraction of the market but on common cars with adequate value that chop shops can easily break down for their replacement parts.

Does a convertible require any special care?

“Absolutely,” says Larry Reynolds, owner of Car Care Specialties in Lodi, N.J., and a long-time convertible enthusiast.

The 2006 Porsche 911 Carrera Cabriolet has a pure canvas top, which should be washed as infrequently as possible. + enlarge image  |  view gallery >

Reynolds explains that there are two types of canvas tops — pure canvas and vinyl-impregnated canvas. European and some Japanese convertible manufacturers use canvas; U. S. and the rest of the Japanese companies use vinyl-impregnated canvas.

With regular canvas, wash the top as infrequently as possible, waiting until it really needs cleaning, Reynolds says. “The key to keeping a canvas top in good condition is using the gentlest product possible if you must wash it — ideally just water, diluted carwash if you have to get rid of bird droppings, say,” he advises.

A regular canvas top should be re-waterproofed with a convertible-top conditioner whenever water stops beading on the cloth. “This can be as often as every six months for a daily driver to every three years for an occasionally driven garage queen,” says Reynolds.

Vinyl-impregnated tops require different care. They aren’t bothered by washing — unless you’re foolish enough to use industrial-strength solvents. But the vinyl waterproofing agent in the canvas degrades in sunlight. “You need to ‘feed’ the vinyl with a product like Renovo Ultra Proofer,” Reynolds says, “and ideally, you should do it two or three times a year.”

If you have leather seats, they also require a little extra care. “Leather does not like rain,” Reynolds warns, “and we’ve all left the top down while we run into a store and then come out to find that a sudden downpour has soaked the interior.”

So you need to condition the leather more frequently, especially on the tops of the seats and the headrests, which get the most sun damage. Reynolds recommends Lexol products for cleaning and conditioning leather.

“And if you leave the top down a lot, u/v damage is also bad for the vinyl inside the car, so you need to use a good vinyl conditioner to counteract this,” he says.

One thing we’d add: Never take a convertible through an automatic carwash. The constantly recycled water contains traces of acidic cleaning agents that can damage a cloth top.

Do the rear windows in convertibles impair visibility?

Convertibles inevitably have less rear visibility than do vehicles with bigger windows.

Most convertible soft tops, such as the 2006 BMW M Roadster, have small rear windows. + enlarge image  |  view gallery >

But size is about the only remaining difference between the rear windows in convertibles and their solid-roofed counterparts.

In the past, soft tops had plastic rear windows, which were vulnerable to scratching, cracking and yellowing, and were impossible to electrically heat for defogging. Today, all convertibles have glass rear windows, and most are heated.